Today during Gathering we talked about Mindfulness and clearing our mind. We learned how to make Mind Jars.
Materials:
- A clear jar or bottle. We used half liter seltzer bottles. The plastic is very clear and strong, and they have lasted 2 years with daily classroom use.
- Liquid. We used a mixture of water and Light Karo Syrup. The children thought it was funny that we’d never eat it, but we’d make mind jars with it.
- Funnel and pitcher
We didn’t have any of these bottles in the recycling, so we used some full ones. We didn’t want to waste the seltzer, so we poured it into jars.
We spent some time exploring the Karo syrup, the seltzer and the plain water. Allowing plenty of time for this exploration, enabled the children to come upon discoveries of viscosity and “air” themselves. Science and Mindfulness. Yummy.
When the seltzer jars were empty, and they had plenty of time to explore the liquids and have some understandings of what happens with glitter in water, and glitter in Karo, we made the decision to fill the bottles part way with Karo syrup. The Karo syrup increased the viscosity, which helps the glitter to fall a little more slowly then with just water. But they had already discovered that on their own. 🙂
Next we filled the bottle almost to the top with water, so we had more liquid.
The children played around with the amounts until they found the result that they liked.
Now we added some glitter. I chose to limit the colors, so we would focus more on the movement affect then the colors. I found that cool colors like blue, or just white and silver seemed to be the most pleasant in the jars. Reds and oranges can look too intense for calming down.
The children worked with a partner for much of the Mind Jar making.
We screwed the lids on VERY VERY tight.
And then watched it S W I R L!
Working together. Fun. Science. Mindful.
